


Stay

by WritingParadox



Category: Rick and Morty
Genre: Angst, Domestic, Drabble, F/M, Ficlet, Fluff, Gen, Oneshot, Pregnancy, Pregnant, under 1500 words
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 05:25:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16570484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WritingParadox/pseuds/WritingParadox
Summary: Pregnant Diane annoyed by her husband and worried about their future as a family."How are you?” He rested his chin on a stray pillow and smiled at his wife.She groaned. “I was fine until you walked in.” She sniffed the air and scrunched her nose. “Were you drinking?”“No.” He hiccupped. She narrowed her eyes. “Yes,” he admitted sheepishly.





	Stay

The clock read four AM as much as she wished it didn’t. She could hear him rustling in the kitchen. A bag or two being opened, poured, and then folded over. The fridge door pulled away from the magnetic closure making a slight whoop noise as the suction released. The fridge shut with a deafening bang. At least, that’s how it sounded to her.

Rolling over to her side, her hand wavered on her plump, bloated stomach. It took her so long to show that no one believed her until a few months ago. And when her mother finally got wind of the news, curses and screams could have been heard throughout the whole galaxy. Just as her mother told her not to date him. She did. Just as her mother told her not to marry him. She did. Just as her mother claimed that if she had a child with that man, she would disown her only daughter. It was not her intent to get her mother out of her life, but it was a benefit of being pregnant. No more family to deal with but her own –the one that she was now building in Muskegon, Michigan.

In a moment of weakness, she shut her eyes with a smile lingering on her face. Her palm cupped around the curve of her stomach. The baby inside stirred slightly at her touch. Her baby. Their baby. They made the choice to start a family together, and she could never regret it. The noises from the kitchen faded away and she began to drift among her thoughts, not fully comprehending them. If there was a God, then the best thing they ever made was sleep. Sleeping with another person growing inside her usually aggravated her awake, but this morning it felt like they were in sync with one another. The sounds melded together, and the room swirled. Every sense was swimming indistinguishably from one another becoming one.

“Diane!” The bedroom door nearly broke off its hinges. Rick stomped in the room, a bagel hanging from his mouth and orange juice sloshing in the glass he held in his other hand.

She jerked up from the bed, her hair flying from her face and sticking together in a knotted bun.

“Diane! Diane! D. D.!” He continued to announce his presence as he made his way over to their bed.

Blinking her lidded eyes, she squinted at her husband. Immediately, she wanted to succumb to anxiety and ask what was wrong. But her motherly instinct subsided as soon as it began. This was her husband after all. The man now pulling off his dress shoes and throwing them to the side only to trip over them in his next step. “Oop,” he stumbled forward, a giddy smile spread across his face. He leaned forward, clutching the half-eaten bagel and glass of juice in his hand, and plopped onto the bed.

“How are you?” He rested his chin on a stray pillow and smiled at his wife.

She groaned. “I was fine until you walked in.” She sniffed the air and scrunched her nose. “Were you drinking?”

“No.” He hiccupped. She narrowed her eyes. “Yes,” he admitted sheepishly. Then, downed the orange juice in one gulp. “Just – a little – bit,” he burped and stuttered over his words. “It was a long night.” He investigated the now empty glass and shook it gingerly back and forth.

Diane pulled her knees to her chin and looked down at him. He wasn’t at work last night. He was in bed with her until – well, she wasn’t sure, but it wasn’t uncommon for him to get up in the middle of the night. She was used to it, especially when he worked early mornings. “Where’d you go?”

Rick was silent as he stared through the glass, then set it on the ground. He averted her gaze as he offered her the bagel.

She took it only to dig her fingers into it and pick at it. She wasn’t hungry. “Rick?” she questioned him again. No response. “You didn’t have any exams to grade, did you?”

He pouted and buried his face into his arms.

“Rick?” She kicked him with her covered foot.

“Yeah?”

“What’s wrong?”

He gazed at her, making constellations in his mind of her freckles. He shook his head. “I was in the garage.” His eyes shifted back toward the ground.

“You’re always in the garage.” She plucked a piece of the bagel and shoved it into her mouth.

“I know,” he stretched out his legs hanging off the side of the bed. “But I’ve been trying to figure some things out.”

“Like what?”

His eyes lit up and he returned to his normal enthusiasm. “Should we build a crib?” Rick pulled his knees onto the bed and pushed himself up, sitting upright and rocking back and forth.

“Wait, what?” Diane spit out bits of the bagel.

“Or a bassinet? Oh! What about a bouncy swing that charges the electricity? Oh –” he raised a finger in the air. “What about – a bath water thermometer that can tabulate the baby’s temperature and growth and the water temperature over time, so you know how to adjust how much water and how hot as they grow older?”

“Rick,” she sighed, wiping off her mouth. “That’s great and all, honey, but—”

He lowered his head to his knees. “I know. I know. I’m going to burn the house down.”

“It’s not that,” she reached out a hand and laid it on his shoulder. He raised his head, his eyes glistening at the sight of hers’. She bit her lip, then pulled her hand back to her lap.

“Then what is it?” He cocked his head at an angle, waiting for her response.

Folding her hands into her lap, she sucked in her breath before blurting out her thoughts. “You don’t seem the least bit worried about this child.” She glued her eyes shut and tightened her fingers’ grip around one another. Her body diminished, curling at the sides. “I’m sorry,” her lips glided against each other, but her voice was inaudible.

Rick slid slowly off the edge of the bed and stood staring down at his wife.

She unclenched her jaw and opened one eye.

Rick sighed and laid a hand on the edge of the bed. “Diane…”

His soft voice commanded her to relax and open both eyes. He didn’t sound angry.

“I care about this child more than anything. How could you say that?”

“I – it’s just what I feel, Rick. I’m sorry. I’m worrying about our child and our future and its—”

“I am slaving over designs all day. I have taken you to the doctor. I have given you food. I’ve done everything I can.” His words began slur the more he spoke. Through dry tears, he spoke, “You don’t think I care about our child?”

“It’s not that –”

“You worry too much. Everything will be fine. I’m a sci—”

“You’re a scientist! I know. Of course, you know everything will be fine.” She begins to stutter looking down at her lap. “Then why don't you just show me everything will be fine? Why don’t you just stay? Stay for one minute! You keep running off. Where are you, Rick? Where are you?”

His fingers leaped from their resting place, reaching farther to pull her in and touch her. His hand landed on top of hers’ and caressed her fingertips before cradling her fingers against his.

He looked into her eyes and spoke softly. “I’m here, Diane. I’m here.”

She gulped, holding back tears and nodded. “Stay,” she pleaded.

His hand squeezed around hers’. “I’ll stay. I’ll stay.”

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting in my drafts all year, so I decided to slap a quick ending on it and just go ahead and post it. Hope you enjoyed it alright!


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